


The Mechanic and The Scientist

by Stunner76



Category: Star Trek
Genre: I just want to finger touch Spock, I keep getting side tracked, I've finally done it boys heres a fic i wrote for myself, I've kept the reader as gender neutral as possible, Other, Pon Farr, You are kind people and deserve to love Spock yourself, but later, sir that's my emotional support projection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 13:53:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28583061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stunner76/pseuds/Stunner76
Summary: The story of how a temporary mechanical engineer fell in love with a science officer
Relationships: Spock (Star Trek)/You
Comments: 2
Kudos: 20





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, cool. This is my first Star Trek drabble I may continue

Laughter bubbled up from your throat as you watched the cadets running through the third deck halls. The USS Enterprise was always bustling with activity. With life. After beaming aboard you were on your way to the bridge. It was the first day of your transfer from the USS Arcadia and you needed to check in with the captain.

The bridge was just as busy as the rest of the ship. You could barely hide your excitement when you finally came face to face with the captain. James T. Kirk. "Its an honor to finally meet you, sir." You introduced yourself and informed the captain that you would be the replacement mechanical engineer while your predecessor was on family leave.

"Welcome aboard, ensign. We look forward to having you on board." Kirk waved you off and as you were boarding the elevator, you made eye contact with the Vulcan science officer. The quirk of his brow made your heart skip a beat and the doors slid shut, taking you down to the main engine room.

Your first day was suddenly your 79th and before you knew it, you had friends. No one on the ship was a stranger except the bridge crew. There was never time to meet them, they were always far too busy with 'Bridge Stuff' as some of the others called it. 

There was no one else awake as you walked the hallways of the Enterprise. It was late, you couldn't sleep and you certainly hadn't expected to see anyone, so walking into the cafeteria and seeing a figure sitting in the dimmed lights startled you.

Pushing the feeling down, you went to the replicator for a cup of tea. You glanced over at the man and quickly looked away again when you made eye contact. Unmistakably Vulcan. Mr. Spock.

"May I join you, sir?" You asked as you sat down with your tea, not waiting for an answer. "We met on my first day." But you reintroduced yourself because technically you were strangers. 

He didn't talk much, but you enjoyed the conversation you were having. He was a scientist first and a starfleet officer second, that much was obvious. It made you smile when he talked about his work.

"Oh man, I wish I could be part of a landing party some day. I can only imagine how amazing it is to make First Contact. That's why I agreed to take this assignment. The Enterprise is famous for First Contact." Vulcans didn't experience emotions the way your people did so you tried to hide your minor disappointment. "But grease monkeys aren't on the list of people required for First Contact." 

He quirked a brow, that same look from before. "Grease monkey?" 

"I'm a mechanical engineer, sir. I build and repair Starfleet engines. Not nearly as interesting as being a scientist." 

Then Spock said something that surprised you. "You are an invaluable member of this team, without you and your department, the Enterprise would not fly." Your bottom lip quivered and you looked down into your empty cup.

"Thank you, Mr. Spock. I… that really means a lot to hear." Especially coming from a bridge officer. "I just wish I could be… I don't know… more involved? I'm only stationed here for the year, so I know there's no point in getting too attached to the Enterprise, but this is the most famous ship in the fleet, to be sitting here tonight is what so many crewmen only dream of."

"You talk a lot." He said simply as he got up and headed for the door.. "Sleep well, ensign."

\-----

Time was different in space. There were no days or nights to help show the passage of time. If it weren’t for the computer, you wouldn’t know if today was six days ago. Working down in the engine room especially made it complicated. All you knew was work. Since your late night tea with Spock, you had been thinking about him a lot. He was the only Vulcan you had ever actually met. The few in the academy with you were more concerned with their own lives to make friends and while you understood it, you found yourself researching Vulcan in your free time. 

After a rough mission on Melia left the Enterprise in desperate need of repairs, you put your personal life on hold. 38 hours into repairs, you couldn’t do it anymore. You couldn’t see straight and your head was spinning. When was the last time you had anything to eat? Drink? You were just about to climb down off the ladder when your foot slipped. 

Your head was pounding when you opened your eyes. The lights were too bright and you whined, bringing your hand up to shield the light. “Oh good, you’re awake. That was a nasty fall you had, ensign. Your ankle is almost done being reconstructed so take it easy, okay?” It was a medical officer? You were in sickbay.

“What happened?” you asked as you pulled yourself into a sitting position.

The doctor scanned your head. “Your crewmen said you blacked out and fell off the ladder you were on. Your foot slipped between the bars and broke your ankle but you should make a full recovery in the next hour so when you’re able to walk again, I want you on bed rest until your next scheduled shift, do you understand?”

“Yes sir, I understand.” you gave a weak thumbs-up and a smile. He walked off to deal with his next patient and that left you to look around sickbay. The Enterprise was going to recover. They always did, you had learned. 

Since you had your tablet on you when engineering beamed you to sickbay, you were able to log in and check the progress of the repairs. In the two hours you’d been unconscious, the chief engineer had gone down to finish your repairs. All the work you had put into the Enterprise had been finished by him and as far as you knew, he was taking all the credit for the repairs you’d done.

“Good, you’re awake.” When the captain walked into the room, you tried to scramble to make yourself more presentable but he held up a hand to stop you so you stilled. Kirk sat in the chair next to you and patted your hand “Scotty said that your work on the warp core saved our lives, ensign.” Pride was swelling up in your chest. Captain Kirk himself was talking to you! Your work hadn’t gone unnoticed! “So I wanted to come down here and thank you personally.”

“Captain, I love this ship, I was just doing what anyone else would do.” You were blushing and looking down at your hands as you picked at a callous. 

“Ensign, I want you to go ahead and take the rest of the week off to recover and relax. You’ve earned it.” pulling your top lip between your teeth, you didn’t respond. “I’m sure you don’t want to feel useless.” Kirk was speaking to you like you were friends and he reached out again to get you to stop picking at the skin on your hands. “So why don’t you take this week to study up on your Vulcan?”

Your head shot up and you finally looked at the famous captain. “Sir?” Kirk just patted your hand and left with a smile. 

\-----

Your week off was leaving you with a disgusting amount of free time. You had been chased out of engineering just about every day. Apparently the team was under direct orders from the captain to make sure you took the time off. Fucker.

So you spent most of your time tinkering with the toys you collected. Remote control things designed to keep children entertained. The sphere following you now was one of your own design. You had taken the working components from the toys that broke and cobbled them together to make something entirely new. 

A few of the other crewmen stopped as they watched you and your toy walk by. You controlled it with your starfleet tablet. Was it appropriate use of the technology? Not by a long shot. But no one was actually going to say anything to you about it because they really didn’t care. As the sphere rolled along, it bumped off the walls and swerved to avoid tripping anyone. A couple people told you it was cool, but no one was really interested in it so you decided to go show your commanding officer. Maybe the lieutenant commander would find it charming.

The trip to the bridge was interrupted by the sphere going off on it’s own. The program you’d used to control your toys was missing some key components and this wasn’t your area of expertise so you decided to just follow along and see where the data took you.

The sphere rolled along until it bumped into a door. “Come.” the voice called from the other side of the door. This was someone’s private quarters and as you stooped to pick up the sphere to get it to leave, the door opened. There stood Mr. Spock with the same quizzical expression on his face he always seemed to have when he looked at you.

“I’m so sorry for the intrusion, sir. My robot came this way on it’s own.” you explained as the sphere tried to roll back out of your arms. “Where are you going? You’re embarrassing me.” you whispered as it slipped out of your grasp. It rolled into his room and you had to stop yourself from following it. “Oh! I get it, now. The cat must be yours! My sphere only reacts like this when the cat is around.” you explained and tried to get it to come back to you but it was already under his bed. 

“Yes, I have a feline companion. Tell me what your sphere does.” His tone was always so serious, it sounded like an order and since he did outrank you, you nodded and handed him the tablet with the control mapping pulled up.

“The sphere is just a toy I built from other scrap.” you explained. “It may look polished and nice on the outside, but deep down, it’s just a fu--” his brow rose. “It’s just a mess, sir. Something to keep me preoccupied during my quote-unquote ‘on-station vacation’ the captain gave me after passing out in the engine room when we left Melia.” You explained the controls to him and soon enough, he had it rolling out from under the bed. “It’s programming has it obsessed with cats for some reason I can’t figure out.”

“What programming software did you use?” the sphere rolled around his quarters as the two of you stood in the entryway together.

“I uh… It’s actually something of my own design. I’ve been working on it for like… ten years now. All my RC toys are controlled through that program because even though I can fix a warp engine, I’m not… actually all that computer savvy. I needed something simple that I could control multiple bots with.” You and Mr. Spock hadn’t spoken since that night you had tea together, this was a nice moment they were sharing.

He controlled the sphere so it rolled out of his room and took a step out the door to follow it. “Let us find somewhere else to take this toy, shall we? I do not want it to put unnecessary strain on my cat.”

“I’m not distracting you from anything important, am I? I didn’t interrupt sleep or meditation?” You followed him as the sphere rolled down the hallway. Spock had turned off the automated balancing system and he was having a much easier time controlling it than you did.

“No, I’ve found myself with free time today. You’re not interrupting anything.” Truth be told, he had been trying to meditate but was having trouble keeping himself focused. “What others have you built?”

“Do you want to see them? They’re all in my quarters on the next deck down.” You were already leading him to the lift. “I’ve been working on this little guy because the project I was working on I just… Can’t get it right. There’s some sort of scientific aspect I’m missing? Hey! You’re a science officer, do you think you might want to take a look at it?”

“I will help you if I can.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A continuation

Biomimetics was the answer to your problem with your robot. You had been trying to make it move, but you had been missing something until Spock told you that wasn’t how animals moved. You had never had a pet before, so you didn’t exactly understand it until Spock helped you.

He had explained that biomimicry was applying organic designs to non-organic forms. You couldn’t figure out how to make your robot move because you didn’t have a clear design to base it off. Spock had upgraded your robot to match the movements of a Vulcan animal called a Sehlat. Apparently, he had one as a pet when he was still a child.

“Okay, ready? I think we’ve got it.” You were kneeling in front of the robot with a smile on your face. Mr. Spock had helped you with your robot during what little free time he had as a bridge officer. “Go ahead and fire it up.” Spock had your tablet and with a nod, he turned on your robot. “Hi, buddy. Welcome to the world.” you greeted it when it turned on.

Spock tapped the screen a few more times and it moved. You crawled out of the way, still on the floor next to Spock’s feet. When your robot took it’s first shaky step, you grabbed his leg and looked up at him with a wide smile. “Our design upgrades seem to be holding, ensign. Would you like to steer?” 

You took the tablet after you stood up and soon the two of you were leading your robot into the hallway. “Hey Spock, do you think we should give it a name?”

“A name? It’s an inanimate object. Why would you name an inanimate object?” he asked as he opened the door and stood off to the side. The robot stumbled on the smooth floor but it was managing.

“Well, names are important. This ship was given a name, right? Why not name a project we worked so hard on?” The three of them were walking together toward the bridge and it was a very slow trek, but you were doing it. Your robot was doing it!

“I’m afraid I do not find that logical.” Spock wasn’t going to be any help to you, he wasn’t the creative type, he was the science type. 

You rolled your eyes and handed the controller to your friend. “I’m going to name him.” you said as you had him follow you with the robot. You had taken Kirk’s advice early on and had been studying Vulcan. Especially now that you considered Spock your friend, you wanted to offer little chances to remind him of home. “I want to name him Skal.” It was a good old Vulcan name.

“Skal? That is a Vulcan name.” there was genuine confusion all over his face, making your smile grow wider.

“Yep. That’s his name now. Come on, Spock let’s see how fast we can get Skal to move. Sometimes you’ve got to run before you can crawl, right?” You took the controls back and gave Skal everything it had. The feet slipped on the floor and he wasn’t going anywhere yet but he was moving. “Yeah!” You jumped up when he got enough traction to start loping down the hallway. “We should give him little shoes!” Spock rolled his eyes and followed you both down the hall, nodding to the people in your path.

\-----

Skal had become a shipwide sensation. Everyone wanted to take a picture with him and wanted to help upgrade him but no matter who else asked, you always rejected their offers. “Sorry,” you would always explain “but this is my project with Mr. Spock, we’ve got it covered.” 

You hadn’t become any closer with the rest of the bridge crew, but they all smiled and waved at you when you passed each other. But you and Spock hadn’t had the chance to sit down together and really work on Skal in almost two weeks. The robot was just sitting in your room waiting for further upgrades. You had too much work to do. 

During meals, the two of you sat together to work on project designs. Spock’s genius intellect and logical thinking coupled with your mechanical abilities were the perfect match. “Do you think we should make it look more biological?” you asked. “I’ve been coming up with some designs but I don’t know if they’re going to be feasible. Do you want me to send them to you so you can cross reference them with the footage we have of Skal’s movements?” His answer didn’t matter, you were already sending them to him.

“Hey you two, how’s the baby growing?” Captain Kirk sat down to join you and you suddenly couldn’t make eye contact.

“Captain, Skal is a robot, not a baby.” You had to take a deep breath before you could look up at him. “Please don’t refer to him as such.”

“I don’t know, you named it and gave it pronouns.” Jim smirked at Spock. “The whole ship calls Skal your baby.” You had to bite your lip to hide the smile on your face when you noticed the tips of Spock’s ears were the faintest shade of jade. Was that what it looked like when he was blushing?

“There is no logic in that, Captain.” Spock said blankly. You had noticed that when he was in a state of emotion, he didn’t experience them, he shut down and seemed to go numb. What emotion was he feeling that made him blank out like this?

Jim stood back up to go sit with the rest of the bridge officers. “Yeah, but maybe you should start thinking illogically.” he winked and walked off to leave the two of you to sit in silence.

What did he mean by that? You wanted to ask but Spock was lost in thought so you didn’t say anything about it, you just picked at your food as you worked on your designs. You glanced again at Spock and if it weren’t for the fact that you had been working with him on such a close level, you wouldn’t have noticed the wisp of a smile on his face. It made you smile to yourself.

\-----

You were just finishing up with your shift when your communicator chirped on your hip. “Hey, it’s me.” you said softly when you answered it. 

“Ensign, I would like to see you.” That was Spock. You swallowed thickly and nodded even though he couldn’t see you. “Are you free right now?” he asked.

“Yes, sorry.” you were still speaking softly in case anyone else wanted to be nosey and listen in. “I’ll be done in just a minute, where do you want to meet?”

“I’ll meet you at your quarters.” The communication channel closed and your heart skipped a beat. Spock had sounded different. Was he okay? What did he want to talk about?

Your mind raced as you walked back to your quarters. You were so focused on your thoughts about Spock that you didn’t notice the creature creeping closer until it was too late. You froze in fear before you glanced down and noticed his little rubber shoes. “Oh wow, look at you, Skal.” you cooed as you crouched to look at him. “Come on, take me to Spock.” You knew Spock was controlling him so you followed him to your room.

Spock was sitting on your lounge chair when you walked in. He rose to greet you and handed you his tablet. During your project, you had shared your program with him and he had made several adjustments. “You have been on the Enterprise for five months.” Was this the same guy on the communicator? He didn’t sound anything like he just had. He sounded blank and empty again.

“You’re right, I have.” As you played with Skal’s new upgrades, you looked to your friend. “Spock, are you okay? You seem like you have something on your mind. Do you want to talk about it?”

"Ensign, I have been tending to your robot, setting my own personal interests aside.” he addressed you by rank instead of your name. After working so closely together, it felt weird to hear this tone of voice.

Your heart was sinking. “Sir?” since he outranked you and he wanted to play this game, whatever it was, then you would be as professional to him as you would to any other commanding officer. “You didn’t have to help me with Skal, I am so grateful for all the help you’ve given me. Without you, this robot would just be sitting here still waiting for me to try to figure it out on my own. If you’re ready to move on and return to normalcy, I understand.”

Spock wasn’t looking at you. What happened? Why was he being so strange? You offered him his tablet back and when he went to take it, his fingers brushed against yours. The contact made his head snap up and he was staring at you so intensely. Creeping up his neck was the same jade color from when Kirk told him the ship thought of Skal as your baby. “I must go.” he was being stiff and robotic so you opened your door for him.

When he stopped at your door, you had to look up from his shoes. He wanted to say something, you could see it on his face. But you didn’t give him the chance. “The idea that you have to be protected from any kind of uncomfortable emotion is what I absolutely do not subscribe to.” You closed your door in his face and locked it behind you. 

Crossing the floor to your lounge chair, you fell into it and sighed heavily. It felt like you weren’t friends anymore for some reason. Maybe you didn’t handle that as logically as Spock would have wanted you to, but humans let themselves feel their emotions. They didn’t shove them all down and bottle them up the way Vulcans did.

\-----

Normal had changed again. You went from being friends with only the engineers to spending all your time with Spock. Now you hadn’t spoken to him in days and your friends in engineering asked you when Skal would be getting more upgrades. “No, he’s done. He’s as upgraded as he’s going to get.”

“For now, right?” you looked down the ladder and shook your head. “What? Why? Did you and Mr. Spock break up or something?”

“Yeah man, what happened between you two anyway? One minute you were joined at the hip and now you haven’t spoken his name in like… A week.” Another said.

“Excuse me?” Your foot slipped again but you were able to catch yourself before you got hurt. “Spock’s my friend, not my boyfriend or whatever the hell you guys think he was.”

“Is that why he’s being a bigger bitch than ever?” 

The group of you turned to see your commanding officer. “Sir?” You slid off the ladder so you were on solid ground.

Scotty pushed himself off the door frame and entered the engine room fully. “I was just saying that ever since you and Spock stopped working on your robot dog, he’s been acting like… Well, a Vulcan.” You watched him pick up a tool to play with it instead of actually working. The group went back to work but the room was silent. Everyone wanted to know what was going on between you and the science officer so they wanted to listen in.

“Sir, he is a Vulcan.” You leaned against the work bench next to Scotty and crossed your arms over your chest. “If he wants to act as such, who are we to stop him?”

“Yeah but he’s insufferable now. You should hear him and Bones going back and forth. Jim’s been trying to keep them from tearing each other’s throats out. So what happened?” 

“Man, your guess is as good as mine. He showed me the aesthetic modifications he made to Skal, said he was putting his own personal interests aside to help me and then said he had to go. So whatever’s going through his mind, he just doesn’t want to help me anymore.” The look on Scotty’s face was making you uncomfortable. “What?”

“Did you kiss?” he asked.

“What? No. Why the hell would we kiss?” Scotty was about to say something else when you flung your arm out against his chest, hitting him in the process. He grunted but didn’t say anything. Your eyes were wild. “Oh my god, he like… Quick, hand me something.” When Scotty held out the wrench, you brushed your fingers against his, the same way Spock had. It felt wrong. “Sir, Captain Kirk wanted me to study Vulcan.” Sort of. “You know Spock well, you’ve been working together for a lot longer than I have. Wha-- Do you think he might like me? Oh no, what if he was trying to make his intentions known? I pushed him away because I got upset about the idea of him not wanting to work with me and spend time together.”

Scotty was grinning. “Yeah, I’d say you were the one who rejected him, not the other way around. If you’ve been researching Vulcans, then you should know that’s how they show affection.” then he gave you a nudge. “I think you should talk to him and sort all of this out. You like him too, right?”

“Yeah.” You nodded and handed the wrench back. “I was running a diagnostic on the main warp core because I keep hearing this clicking noise. You should check it out for me.”

“Where are you going?”

“To talk with Spock.”


	3. Chapter 3

Joining Starfleet was something not everyone could handle. Living in space, being so far away from the life you used to live… Everything was new and different. You were expected to behave a certain way, follow all the rules and protocol. 

But not every aspect of life could be lived by following strict rules. The needs of many could not be taken into consideration if you let your own personal needs fall to the wayside. How could you take care of anyone if you couldn't take care of yourself?

You steeled yourself as you rang the chime on Spock’s door. Scotty said he was meditating in his private quarters. After a few moments of waiting, the door opened and Spock was standing there.

"I need to talk to you." You said and he stepped aside to let you in. Part of you had been expecting him to close the door in your face so you entered the room before he had the chance to change his mind. 

"What do you need to talk about?" He turned from you and when he did, you took his hand in your own. Spock’s expression was unreadable. 

"I…" you let his hand go and it fell limply to his side. "I care so deeply about you and it's confusing me. You're the best friend I've made on the Enterprise. I know Vulcans suppress their emotions. I know you don't do this kind of thing, but I need you to know that if you ever want to be something more than just my friend, I want that too." You started to pace as he sat down and waited for you to continue. "I'm not asking you to change who you are. I like who you are. I miss you. I miss spending time working on Skal together. I'm sorry for crossing this boundary but I want to understand what I did wrong to push you away."

He stood in front of you to get you to stop pacing and you looked up at him. "The fault is my own." His tone was flat and you couldn't look at him anymore. “I’ve caused you pain and emotional distress when that was never my intention. The captain explained that you have been studying Vulcan customs. Why?”

“Because I thought if I could understand more of the culture you were raised in, then I would be able to understand more about you, Spock. It’s because I wanted to be your friend and I didn’t want to do anything that you would consider unacceptable, you know?” he surprised you when he took both of your hands in his own. You knew enough about Vulcan culture to know that physical contact was intimate and sacred. “Spock?” you looked back up at him as a smile stretched across your face.

“You are important to me as well. I cannot express it the way humans do.” his thumb was rubbing the back of your hand.

“You don’t have to.” You squeezed his hands and stepped closer so there was only energy between you. You bit your lip. “May I kiss you?”

“I would like that.” Spock leaned down and the two of you shared a kiss. It was uncommon for Vulcans to participate in human gestures, but Spock was also a human. You let go of his hands but kept your first two fingers wrapped around his. When you pulled away, he was blushing that pretty jade color again and it made you laugh a little.

“Thank you.” you said softly as he looked down at your hands. A small smile was playing across his face. 

\-----

Since your confession of intention, you and Spock had tried not to change the dynamic too much. After your first kiss, the two of you sat down and discussed boundaries right away. He outranked you and even though you were in different sections, it still didn’t look good to Starfleet and neither of you wanted to be transferred off the ship. 

Besides, a secret relationship was fun and exciting. You got to steal glances at one another when your paths intersected and when time and privacy allowed, neither of you were against a little finger touching. 

Your fellow crewmen in the engine rooms noticed the change in your behavior, though. You were happier than you had been since you first beamed on the Enterprise. “Alright, so what’s with the smile?” You accepted the multi-tool and looked down at the woman who had asked you. You were friendly with one another and talked, but never about personal things so it was a surprise.

“Oh, it’s my robot Skal. I was just thinking about making another one. Skal was always the prototype, built out of spare parts and bubble gummed together with a bit of love. Spock and I have been coming up with a new design.” You climbed higher on the ladder to run a diagnostic on the clicking sound Scotty hadn’t fixed.

“You and Spock, huh? When you first started working on your robot together, the two of you talked all the time and now no one ever sees you talking except at meals.” She leaned against the railing and crossed her arms over her chest.

“We have our own lives to live. I can’t spend all day on the bridge and he never comes down to the engine rooms, so meal time is the only time we can collaborate.” That wasn’t true in the slightest bit but no one else knew that. You were just about to say something when the computer announced a Red Alert.

Sliding down the ladder, you went to your console to check in. A plasma storm? "Where did you come from?" You asked the storm itself. A burst of energy knocked the ship off balance, sending you crashing to the ground. Alarms were flashing all around you and you tapped the console. "Engine rooms to bridge, come in bridge!" You tried to hail someone. Anyone. "Engine rooms to bridge, do you copy?" Were the ship's comms offline? Panic set in. You were still in the middle of a plasma storm and you couldn't reach the bridge. 

Was Spock okay? What happened to the bridge? You needed to find out. "Stay here, keep an eye on the warp engines. I don't know how much longer we'll have. If anything happens…" if the warp engine got any further damaged, it could mean the death of every life on board. "I'll be right back with Scotty."

You took off at a dead sprint, jumping over crew members as you tried to get to the bridge. You didn't have much time, the Shockwaves were causing damage all over the ship and the lights had gone down. Enterprise was losing power and fast. It wouldn't be long until everything shut down completely. Lifts were offline, the only way to the bridge was through a maze of Jeffries tubes. You swallowed thickly and quickly climbed the service ladder. You had no choice. They were plenty big to crawl through but cramped spaces made you nervous.

You could do this, you just had to breathe and think about getting to the bridge. Two lefts, a vertical climb and then a right into the ventilation shaft. You kicked and kicked at the panel below you until it clattered to the floor and you jumped down onto the bridge. 

Spock was the first to approach you and almost reached out to take your hand. You smiled at him and nodded. "Lieutenant Commander Scott, you're needed in the warp engines. This plasma storm has caused severe damage and we can't fix it without you." You explained. "If we can't get it fixed, they'll blow and everyone dies."

The entire bridge crew was staring at you after your dramatic entrance. "Then we have no time, Ensign. We have to get to the warp engines. Though you do know that we have a service ladder right over there. You didn’t have to crash through the roof.” Scotty pointed to the ladder tucked in the corner. 

You winked at Spock as you moved to the ladder. “What can I say, sir? I like to make a dramatic entrance.” He looked down with his wisp of a smile.

\-----

“You’re like the moon, you know that?” Spock looked down from his book to see you laying on the floor and looking up at him with a smile. 

“What do you mean by that?” he asked as he slid out of his chair to sit on the floor with you. When Spock held out two fingers, you reached out and pressed your fingers to his in the customary Vulcan way. 

“You seem so cold and distant, but you’re not.” You pushed yourself up onto your knees so you could face him properly. “You’re so bright and beautiful and breathtaking and when I look at you, I’m not afraid of the… uncertainty of space. You make me excited to face the darkness of the unknown because I know you’ll be there too.”

“You are very kind-hearted to say such a thing to me.” Spock said and reached up to cup your face. You turned into his palm to place a gentle kiss against the warm skin. “Though I am not as adept in such words.”

“You don’t need to be, Spock. You say it best when you say nothing at all.” You pressed your fingers against his again. Ever since the plasma cloud incident, any time the bridge crew had questions, they would call down and ask you specifically. It made you feel important. It meant you got to interact with Spock a lot more.

“You have been studying Vulcan culture, right?” you nodded in response to his question. “Then tell me, have you heard of...” Spock was hesitating? “Pon Farr?” Your face went red in response and you nodded again.

“I’ve read about it, but there aren’t many Starfleet files on it. I know it’s a um… A mating urge, right? Why are you bringing it up?” you asked. “Are you about to go through it?”

“No, I still have plenty of time before Pon Farr. I wanted you to know what to expect when it happens because the captain wants you to become a permanent member of our crew.” This was big news to you and your eyes lit up. You pushed yourself up so you were standing on your knees and draped your arms around his shoulders. “Crashing through the ceiling to warn us about the engines was the kind of creative thinking our captain admires. I wanted to be the first to tell you.”

“Okay, so you started talking about Pon Farr and then changed the subject. Is there more I need to know?” you asked.

“I am betrothed. Her name is T’Pring, our fathers felt we would be the best fit for one another and while I feel nothing for her, when it is time for my Pon Farr, I must return to Vulcan to mate with her and take her as my wife.” Your bewildered expression had Spock looking away from you.

“I know I’m just a human, Spock but… If I can, when the time comes, I would like to offer my services to help you through your Pon Farr.” You spoke slowly, trying to make yourself sound as logical as possible, but your stomach was flipping all around. “You mean so much to me, I wouldn’t want you to suffer through a painfully loveless marriage just because that’s what your father wanted.”

“You really are too kind to me.” Spock tucked your hair behind your ear. “Though I am sure that my own humanity will allow me to avoid Pon Farr as I have not gone through it before.” 

“Well then, we’ll just have to cross that bridge when we get there.” You stood up and helped him as well. Spock was betrothed to another. You weren’t going to stress about it because Spock didn’t seem to be. “Come on, I want to show you something, moon of my life.”

“I would follow you anywhere, my sun and stars.” When Spock said that, your head whipped around and your eyes were wide. He had that tiny little smile on his face. You giggled excitedly and led him to the lift.

“We’re going to Holodeck 3.” The trip was short and you told the computer to run your personal program. The doors slid open and you motioned for Spock to go in. Inside the holodeck was an advanced replica of Earth’s first lunar colony. “When I was little, all I wanted was to just see Earth from space. I’d seen pictures and videos, but I wanted to know what it looked like. Every little kid dreams of space travel. And when I was seventeen, I got that chance. I got to come here.” The people passing by were just projections of the people they were. You could interact with them, but you knew you didn’t need to. You had Spock to share this moment with.

You led him to the observation deck and there it was. Just as bright and beautiful as you remembered. Spock stood in front of the window with you and stared at the Earth. Other people were also enjoying the view. Children, families, lovers. Everyone on the lunar colony loved the view of Earth. “I see why you replicated this moment to relive in the holodecks.” 

“It was a school trip, when my class first got here, we would point out the countries. The next day, it was just continents and then by the time we left, we understood what it meant to be from Earth. That was my first time being away from home for more than just a night and I was on the moon! For a whole week! I didn’t leave Earth again until I graduated Starfleet academy and boarded the Arcadia. That was two years ago, I haven’t been home since.” The two of you were enjoying the scenery together. 

“Why have you not returned to Earth?” Spock asked quietly as he turned to face you.

“Because I knew that Earth would never be enough for me after my first mission.” You clapped your hands twice and the people and furniture vanished. Soft music started playing and you held your hand out for Spock to take. “Will you dance with me?”

“Vulcans do not dance.” He looked down at your hand.

“But you’re not just a Vulcan, Spock. You’re also human. Humans dance.” That seemed to be a logical enough answer because Spock took your hand as the music played.

_Fly me to the moon  
Let me play among those stars  
Let me see what spring is like  
On Jupiter and Mars_

__

__

_In other words, hold my hand  
In other words, baby kiss me  
Fill my heart with song, let me sing forever more  
You are all I long for, all I worship and adore  
In other words, please be true  
In other words, I love you_

Spock understood the concept of dancing and it took no time for him to figure out the dance steps needed to keep up with you. As the two of you shared your dance, you continued to sing along with the song. Spock really was one of a kind. No one else, human or otherwise, could come close to the light that he shined. This was a moment you wanted to remember for the rest of your life. 

\-----

You were a permanent member of the USS Enterprise now. Your relationship with Spock had bloomed into love, despite the fact that neither of you had said the word and that your relationship was still a secret. “Ensign, have you got a moment?” You were in the gym wrapping your hands for routine combat practice when the captain stepped in front of you. You were on your feet at attention. “At ease, ensign.” Your shoulders sagged in relaxation.

“What can I help you with, sir?” you asked, having to fix your wraps since you were interrupted. 

“Please, call me Jim. Will you take a walk with me?” His request came as a surprise to you. Jim? You felt like you didn’t know him well enough to call him that but you got up and walked with him so there wouldn’t be any eavesdroppers. 

He hadn’t said anything as you left the gym. “What’s on your mind, Captain Jim?” He laughed when you called him that. Hell yeah, getting on the captain’s good side.

“Well, I’d like to talk to you about your relationship with Mr. Spock.” That made you falter and you had to rush to keep up with him.

“Sir?”

“You probably think you’re being subtle. He sure does. But I’ve known Spock for years, he’s my best friend.” Jim glanced at you and smiled when he saw you smiling. “You’re making him happy, you know that? Any time anyone mentions going to engineering during your shift, he’s the first to volunteer. When Scotty mentions your work, Spock is - for a lack of a better term - all ears.” it was your turn to laugh. 

“So does that mean we have the captain’s permission to pursue this relationship more?” Your insides were flipping excitedly. “We both understand our roles on this ship and neither of us wants to compromise that. Vulcans don’t do PDA anyway, so it’s not like we’ll be inappropriate anywhere someone can see us.”

Jim was so different from Spock. He patted your shoulder and nodded. “You have my approval. You’re a valued member of this crew and your happiness is just as important as anyone else’s. Besides, when Spock makes his mind up about something, it’s nearly impossible to get him to change it and he’s made his decision about wanting to be with you.”

As you walked with the captain, you were too focused on your conversation to care about where he was leading you. “Jim, I… thank you. Like you said, you’re best friends so hearing that from you really does mean a lot. But I’m not going to keep calling you Jim. I’m sorry sir, but it feels really weird to address my captain by such a familiar name.” 

The lift brought you up to the bridge and you stepped out with him, giving Spock a wink. He quickly looked back down to focus on his work. “Alright, ensign, I’ve taken up enough of your time.” said Jim as he sat down in his captain’s chair. You nodded and walked out of the bridge with a smile so wide it hurt your cheeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen, I really don't know where I'm going with this. I don't even know if anyone is reading it. I care and I would like to know what you think of this hot garbage so if you've actually been enjoying this, will you acknowledge me somehow?


	4. Chapter 4

"Ensign, have you ever been in a state of weightlessness?" Spock asked as he came into the room. Recently you had given each other the freedom and trust to enter the other's quarters unannounced if the door was unlocked. 

Looking up from your tablet, you shook your head. "No, I haven't. What's on your mind?" You stretched out your legs and sat up straight.

"Do you have the time to accompany me to Holodeck 3?”

You gave him a warm smile and held up your first two fingers. He crossed the distance to put his fingers against yours. “Is there something you want to show me?” You asked, standing up. “I’ll have to change first.” 

“Then I’ll wait for you outside and we can walk together.” Spock nodded and left the room without another word. 

Whatever he was planning, it was something important to him or else he wouldn't have come in so quickly. You changed and met him outside your door. "Are you ready?" You asked, brushing your knuckles against his but not taking his hand. 

You smiled up at Spock as the two of you stopped in front of the holodeck. He ran the simulation code for your lunar colony and it was confusing. Why would he bring you somewhere you had been several times before? Only one way to find out. You quirked a brow as you followed him inside. Spock’s fingers laced with yours when the door closed and you looked up at him with a smile. “I do hope you don’t mind the change I made. I can reprogram it back to your original settings.”

“I’m sure I’ll enjoy your surprise.” You rubbed your thumb against the back of his hand. As far as you noticed, you and Jim were the only ones who he let touch his hands. Spock led you through the maze of hallways, down a path you were very familiar with. He was taking you to the observation deck. 

The deck was empty already? No obstacles of any kind could be seen. Spock stopped in front of you and guided one of your hands to rest on his shoulder while he held the other aloft. Dancing? Spock wanted to dance with you? You nodded your head with a wide smile and his hand was on your hip. “Computer, initiate subprogram B-52-G.” 

Music started to play and you laughed. “Spock, if you wanted to dance, you should have just said so--- oh! Oh my, we’re floating!” 

“Yes, I have adjusted your simulation code with my own subprogram,” he explained.

You carefully let go of his hands and tried to put some distance between yourselves. Then you tried swimming through the air. It really was just like being underwater. “This is so amazing.” you rose and rose until you touched the ceiling. Just a gentle push to get you floating in front of the glass instead of being pressed against it.

This was what you had dreamed of your whole life. Floating in space, just looking at the earth. Nowhere to be, nothing to do but watch it go. A moment where you felt so alone. Just you and the universe. That was when you felt a hand in yours and you looked to see Spock by your side. 

He turned to face you and held both your hands to keep you tethered together. “Are you having fun?” The anti-gravity was making you drift. The two of you floated together and despite the beautiful view of the Earth, your focus was completely on the Vulcan holding you.

Was it the lack of gravity causing butterflies in your stomach or was it the way Spock was looking at you? You barely pushed off the ceilings again, just enough to make you drift your way along. Just staring at Spock filled you with such a strong surge of emotions and your eyes welled up with tears. “This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me…” He wiped your tears and you kissed his palm. “Thank you for bringing me here to experience this.”

“While it was not my intention to make you cry today, thank you for agreeing to come with me.” he acted like this emotionless, purely logical being but you could see the relief in his eyes. He cared about making you happy.

As you floated along, you went from holding his hands to wrapping your arms around his neck to hug him close. Your bodies were pressed against one another and it made you feel so warm. “This is a once in a lifetime experience and I’m so happy it’s with you.” you whispered softly, resting your head on his shoulder. The room went quiet and the only sound was the melody from the speakers. You didn’t know how long you held one another like that, floating along in silence. “I love you, Spock.” your confession was quiet, barely above a whisper, but it cut through the silence loud and clear.

He didn’t respond right away. You hadn’t expected him to, you were just telling him something on your mind. He didn't need to say anything, the way he gripped the back of your shirt was plenty. You turned your nose into his neck to deeply breathe him in. 

\-----

You sat in the dining hall, slumped over the table working on something you thought was very important when Spock walked up to join you. As he stood in front of you, you sat up and raised your arm to throw it at him. “What is this?” it hit him in the chest and landed on his tray. It was a small piece of paper folded so it would glide through the air. 

“A paper plane,” you grinned and offered him a piece of paper. “It’s based on an obsolete Earth interplanetary shuttlecraft. Do you want to make one?” 

“What is the purpose of making one of these?” he asked as he sat down to examine the plane, his lunch already forgotten.

Good old Spock, always asking the important questions. You’d put thought into this before pitching it to him. “Making just one? It’s pointless. But if you’ve got more than one? Built by more than one person? Then you can test your designs in a competition, of course.” You slid him a piece of paper. “You follow the same general pattern as this, this is what children teach each other when they have no other toys to play with.”

“You and your toys.” Spock rolled his eyes but unfolded the paper that had landed on his lunch to study the design. He folded and unfolded it once more before moving to his own paper. You slid another piece to Spock’s left and he glanced at it but it didn’t distract him from his plane. 

“Hey Jim, how are ya?” You greeted the captain as casually as you would have greeted your own brother. Spock sat up and stared between the two of you, trying to figure out what was going on to make you so familiar all of a sudden. 

Jim just smiled and sat on Spock’s left. “What are we making?” he asked and instantly picked up the paper. “Oh these things!” His face lit up. “I haven’t made a paper flyer since…” he blew air through his lips in thought. “Since my days in primary school.” Spock glanced at you and all you offered was a smile in response.

The three of you had your flyers built and ready to race. “So how should we determine the winner of this competition, Mr. Spock?” He stacked your empty trays on one table and motioned to them.

“To determine the winner of this competition, we will vote on which glider is the most aerodynamic. That means, whichever goes the farthest and stays in the air long enough.” he explained. “We will be releasing them from your position and this stack of trays is the end goal.”

“Excellent, Mr. Spock. Are you ready to lose?” Jim asked as the three of you lined up. You may have put this together, but this was very much a moment for Jim and Spock to do something that didn’t involve the fate of everyone aboard the Enterprise. 

“On the count of three.” You held up your plane, they did as well. “3...2...1, go!” the three planes soared through the dining room. Yours made it to the halfway point before descending and going beneath the third table, Spock’s crashed into the finish line and Jim’s sailed through the air far past the line. “Excellent form, Captain.” you praised as the three of you went to collect your gliders.

“It appears that although yours lost altitude, it continued to move beneath the table. You crossed the finish line, ensign.” Spock handed you your plane and when you thought no one was looking, you tapped your first two fingers against his quickly. Any little moments the two of you shared had to be so brief it looked like an accident.

“Care to go again?” Jim stepped up close to you both and even though he had his plane out, you knew he was looking at where your hands had touched. 

You nodded and went back to the starting point. “I’d love to. Spock, would you like to continue as well?” And so the three of you spent your lunch break together, snacking on your food and playing with your paper flyers. 

This was the longest interaction you’d had with the captain your entire time on the Enterprise and you had to admit, you understood why Spock admired him so much. Jim Kirk was a wonderful man. He was playful, kind and honest. He captured the attention of everyone around him and his charisma was enough to draw anyone to his cause. He had been the drawing factor that had gathered your current audience.


End file.
